Church friends, can I vent a little? I know we are generally well meaning, and I understand that we have good intentions. But we need to realize that our words are weighty. When we speak to each other in church meetings or prayer groups and talk about reaching the lost, let’s not use phrases like “we are called to love the unlovable” or “there are a lot of sinners out there” or “let us be open to receiving them (you know, the sinners).”
Statements such as these imply that the sinful and the unlovable are out of the church, and by default the lovable and the sinless are inside. We know better, right? We know the Bible says we are as unlovable as the next guy, yet despite ourselves, we are immensely loved. We know that we are sinners, every single one of us, forgiven sinners. We KNOW this. Yet, somehow, when we communicate with each other, we separate ourselves from “those” people, as if we were somehow better or more worthy. Let us remember we were DEAD in our sins, but Jesus, in his great mercy breathed life into us, called us by name, and rescued us. WE DID NOTHING other than believe. And we cannot even take credit for our belief, since we know that even faith is a gift from God.
The Gospel is God’s transforming truth for ALL of us, inside and outside the church. For some, it may be the welcoming into the kingdom of Christ. For others, it’s the shedding of a self-centered lifestyle. But that doesn’t change who we are: LOVED SINNERS. The Gospel is free! Let’s season our words so they say what we really mean. When we communicate, let us include ourselves in the sinners and the unlovable and the needy categories. Because we are. We are part of mankind, and mankind needs a Savior.
Venting complete.
Like a Deer Panting for Water... 
I absoultly loved this I know many people inside and out side my church who need to read this message. Besides that I myself have made this same mistake , thank you ! may I share it in my Facebook page ??
Thank you Ginarosa! Of course you may share this 🙂
Amen! Amen! Amen! May I post this. It applies to every church. It irks me when people lose touch with the sinner in themselves and start they are the chosen holy and the rest of the world is not.
Of course! Share away. Glad you found this applicable 🙂
I found myself saying, “Preach it Sistah!” I am so grateful that you reminded me of the Gospel. Over the last 4 years I have realized how much I need to remind myself of the Gospel every day. That the Gospel is not just for those who have not heard the Good News, but for us who believe it as well. How easy it is to fall into the place of the Pharisees! It scares me. My desire is to be grateful and humbled by the fact that God has poured out his love on me. I have been learning so much over the last 7 to 8 months since Dan and I became a part of the core team of a church plant (http://emmauscity.blogspot.com/p/about.html) here in Worcester, MA. We are a family of servant missionaries. We want to include the people of peace, the sojourners, and disciples and to, as you said in so many words, remember that we are sinners in need of God’s grace daily. Thanks for writing. Love to you and the whole Ledon family.